The Watchmen movie

I read the book when I was much younger and reread it a few months before the release of the movie. Loved it even more the second time I read it.

I was aware of the failed attempts of directors and writers into adapting the book into film. I understand why they had so much difficulty with the translation into film. There were narrative techniques done in the book that are just impossible to film mainly due to time constraints. So my hopes for a movie translation were going down the drain.

I was skeptical when I heard that Zack Snyder was to helm the movie. I liked <u>300</u> for what it was, a visually stunning action movie. <u>The Watchmen</u>, however is not a typical superhero story. So I was worried as to whether Snyder can do the book justice.

While I enjoyed the movie and deem it to be worthy of viewing, I feel that it did not live up to the hype and the standards of the book.

The director was very inconsistent with his choices. It seemed like he was confused as to what kind of movie he was making. On the one hand, he made some smart choices in the dramatic scenes. On the other, the action scenes undermined what he accomplished.

I don't have a problem with one of the big changes:<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Warning, Spoiler: <input type="button" class="form-button" value="Show" onclick="if (this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div').getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display != '') { this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div').getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = '';this.innerText = ''; this.value = 'Hide'; } else { this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div').getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = 'none'; this.innerText = ''; this.value = 'Show'; }" /></div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div style="display: none;">The fake alien squid was replaced by Dr. Manhattan as the external/outsider enemy that united the world in peace.</div></div></div> as I feel that it fulfilled the same idea.

I do have a problem with the way Ozymandias was portrayed, especially the exclusion of his final conversation with Dr. Manhattan from the book:<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Warning, Spoiler: <input type="button" class="form-button" value="Show" onclick="if (this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div').getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display != '') { this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div').getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = '';this.innerText = ''; this.value = 'Hide'; } else { this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div').getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = 'none'; this.innerText = ''; this.value = 'Show'; }" /></div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div style="display: none;">Before Dr. Manhattan left for Mars for good, Ozymandias asked him if he "did the right thing in the end?" Dr. Manhattan replied that there is no end. He left immediately, leaving Ozymandias with more questions and doubting his actions.</div></div></div> To me, that was essential not only to his character but also to the whole movie.

I'm interested to read the opinions of others whether you read the book or not.

 

The movie ending made much more sense for the movie itself. The reason I say this is there weren't the in between sections of The Black Freighter and the kind of little bits about the characters in the movie. All of that was pretty important to the end of the book, where as it couldn't have worked in the movie like that.

I agree about Ozymandias. He was a twig in the movie and hes supposed to be the worlds greatest athlete. Hes huge in the book.

Overall though the movie got most of the characters dead on, especially Rorschach. The guy they got to play him was fantastic in that role. Even Ozy didn't miss the mark as far as acting and his actual character, just his build. The Comedian was perfect, so was Dr. Manhattan.

The music was absolutely perfect the entire movie. Never once did the music miss the mark.

I will have to disagree about the action because there isn't really all that much action in the book either, and what was in the movie was really well done.

 

While the action was well done for sure in terms of choreography, but he pushed the violence a little too much. As well as the skills of the characters. At certain parts they fought like they had powers.

There was no need for the Silk Spectre and Nite Owl 2 to be as violent as Rorshach and The Comedian. I thought it was pushed a little too much just because he can.

The sex scene was overly done as well. The length of the scene served no purpose in the whole scheme of things. The scene would still make the same point without being explicit.

 

I was fully prepared to dislike the movie. As soon as I saw the 5 sec clip of the young rorschach in the opening, I was sold.

With the exception of ozymandias, as noted, everyone in the movie looked and acted like they had just stepped out of the pages of the BOOK. Awesome job by casting / makeup.

I was fine with the action scenes for the most part. The director is better than 95% of hollywood at directing physical fight scenes, so I can understand why he played to his strengths. I think the powers thing was right on the mark - just above human, but not superman. The sex scene was overdone for sure, meh.

Ending annoyed some hardcore fans (like my wife), but I think it came across better on screen than the real ending would have.

I disagree that the narrative techniques used in the book were unfilmable. One of the main techniques used throughout the book, the visual pun, could have been used in the movie (and was in some cases). They just didn't do anywhere near as much of it.

 

I think it's "unfilmable" in a sense that there isn't enough time in a movie to do it as much or as well as the book did. That's why some of the directors who tackled the project before suggested that it may be better off a maxi-series of movies. I believe it was Terry Gilliam who mentioned this.

The movie was practically 3 hours long and there were major things omitted and changed for it to work. I believe the ending was changed because of this. The original ending was the big hurdle before, as it requires a lot more characters and screen time to explain.

 

No tales of the black freighter? BOO-urns!

 

"The initial release of Black Freighter will be a separate DVD. There will be special package that includes Watchmen Director's Cut + The Black Freighter, when Watchmen releases on DVD of course. This is confirmed by Snyder."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zUgBK0-qbo

and also "under the hood"

ps. i loved the movie, blue ray DAY ONE. I really dont know how it could have been any better without sacrificing -something- that something in my opinion its the balance of either entertaining the general public (more money!) aka...the violence + nudity, or totally pleasing the hadcore by making the movie scene by scene, word for word (which btw, i felt it did! of course not 100% but what other movie had! before this one) therefore making less money, of course, that is me assuming that a 100% accurate portrail of the movie is not gonna work on film, cause I beleive you just HAVE to make some changes. to quote someone "Faithfulness in adaptation is not necessarily a virtue; this is a movie and not a marriage"

I agree with most of the changes in the movie, sure there are some minor details that could have been done better but they are so tiny it doesnt bring down the whole movie.

back to my point of sacrificing something, the movie is 2 1/2 hours long...its too long, meaning less people see it. for that amount of time i think the director did a miracle. then theres the dvd (i aint buying that, blue ray for me) that version will be the shit! /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif

about the extra violence + sex scene + blue cock galore, I see it like this, wasnt the comic book...at the time, famous for its edgy raw portrail of its violence and sex? i beleive this comic raised some eyebrows and I feel the director wanted to have some shock value as well, cause the comic did it too, besides im not complaining for the extra violence, i was glad! sorry for being simple minded but its entertaining , plus who can say no to specter II's tits? MOAR plz /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif

anyway imo movie is great for the time allowed.

lol damm biggest "ps. " ever /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif

 

whaaaaat?!! wicked news.

 

motion comic is better but the movie didn't suck ....so +1 to Snyder I guess

 

I'm currently under the impression they were too faithful to the book. For some scenes this works really well, for others not so much. Where it works it is absolutely glorious. Where it doesn't it really falls flat.

I agree with Sudden Death that the original book was made to contain shocking images for the time so to get the same effect in this day and age Zack had to amp it up. To see people actually argue-ing over it proves his choice was right.

I'm still uncertain on the sex scene, but it had to be quite raw as it concerns desperate people and is a comment on the fetishistic nature of costumed heroes.

Ozy needs at least one extra scene to truly flesh out his character, as it is, it's too abvious he's the villain.

I really want to see the directors cut. The original theatrical cut was over 3 hours, that one was eventually cut down. The directors cut will then probably be well over 3:15 or something.

 

I have the comic and I havent seen the film. I doubt I will although it would be cheaper to go to a movie theatre rather than watch it on dvd. Im no big fan of the comic and I suspect the movie in this time and day cant be anything but too violent if it reflects the comic enough. Or it doesnt reflect the comic enough which would make it bad.

 

Wow, really? Complaining over a sex scene? I wouldn't be surprise if the same people who are complaining over the sex scene, downloads gig's of porn everyday.

 

THE DVD IS CUT MORE LIKE THE COMIC. IT WILL ALSO BE 3 TO 4 HOURS LONG.

 

WHAT? WOW, THAT'S SOUNDS GOOD. AND IT SOUNDS GOOD TOO.

 

It's not really a complaint on the sex scene on it's own. But when I look at the movie overall, it didn't fit and seem to be a cheap way of attracting the mainstream audience.

 

if I wasn't surrounded by people who knew me... I would have beat my shit during that scene. Man that shit was dope! Can't wait for the Bluray... I'll get to beat my shit then in the privacy of my own home.

It's gonna be great! /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif

 

LOL 001 that shit never gets old .

also, oioron wasn't complaining about the sex he was just saying it was a bit too long. I agree on that but its a change that pleases pervs like myself /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif (see rod gonna get blueray just for that lol another example of pleasing the general public $$$!)

 

i loved the comic and found the movie to be a pretty good adaptation...although, i do have a couple complaints.

first, i also agree that the sex scene was pretty awkard...not really for the fact it was a sex scene as that was a faithful comic to film scene, but it did go a bit long and the music (which is one of my biggest beefs) was too much of a joke to make the scene connect and mean something. they could have cut that scene in half, still had the tits shot and some gyrating and then went right to the flame thrower joke and it would have had the same effect and saved a few minutes on the final cut and allow ozzy and manhattan that minor, but important, convo at the end of the film. i felt this scene was just one step up from the extreme awkwardness of the 8 mile sex scene where you're basically just watching facial expressions until eminem gets his. this went on a bit too long and didn't need to to make it's point. if you want porn, go buy or download porn...i don't need that type of stuff in movies just for the sake of them being in movies.

secondly, the biggest beef i had was the musical choices. the one during the owl ship sex scene was humorous, but distracting and just didn't fit at all and made it more awkward than anything. then you had too much mainstream poppish music popping up sporatically where it just didn't fit and was again, distracting. the opening was brilliant, some of the music was great...but the stuff that wasn't, was enough that took away for the whole, IMO.

the ending, while i didn't mind the changes too much, i think they missed the boat with a few scenes that just needed to be in there that they left out. having nite owl take shots at ozzy and having ozzy just take it was great, IMO, because if left you feeling sympathetic some with ozzy and kept the whole morally gray aspect of the ending intact and even enhanced it some. but, the big thing it missed was the ending convo with dr. manhattan. that would have really taken the ending up that extra notch it needed. it also would have kept the viewer thinking about the right/wrong aspect of what he did and if it was worth it. that's what was so great about the comic...and groundbreaking...yet, they keep everything else so close to the comic and change the most impactful stuff. that bothers me a bit.

also, the reason the comedian needed to be killed in the book...what triggered him starting to lose it and drive him to visit moloch was that he saw the squid. what, other than a list of names that supposedly or did have cancer, did the comedian see that made him come unhinged like that? that part doesnt' make sense unless you go with the fantastical alien squid ending. then, using manahattan as the enemy, when he was portrayed as a US weapon, doesn't make that much sense that's what causes the whole world to unite. i know that there would still be some countries out there blaming the US over it since he was a 'US creation' none the less. that also bothers me and that's what was so brilliant about the comic. it took something so fantastical and unbelievable to become a 'reality' to cause the world to unite in peace towards one goal and/or common enemy. that was somewhat taken out of the movie.

other than those few things, i still thought it was a good movie adaptation. ozzy as the villian was also pretty obvious through the early scenes which shouldn't have been...that was another aspect of the book that was done better. but, still, it wasn't completely horrible and didn't miss the mark that much and that still should be applauded. watchmen was said to be unfilmable...snyder did just that, though...props to him for sure.

 

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">if I wasn't surrounded by people who knew me... I would have beat my shit during that scene. Man that shit was dope! Can't wait for the Bluray... I'll get to beat my shit then in the privacy of my own home.

It's gonna be great! /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif </div></div>

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